Does Your Cat's Purr-sonality Match Yours? Here's Why, According to Research

If you've ever thought that your kitty was acting a bit like you, you're not alone. Lots of cat owners entertain the idea that there's a little bit of themselves in their felines — and vice versa. Well, recent research shows that these fur mamas might be onto something after all.

The October 2018 study published in Personality and Individual Differences analyzed 126 cat owners and their pets, measuring the humans' personality traits and comparing them to their cats' purr-sonalities. The participants filled out a questionnaire with two sections, one of which covered the "Feline Five" personality traits for cats, and another that dove into human personality traits and cat ownership satisfaction. Results showed that the cat traits and respective owner traits lined up remarkably well.

Cat owners who scored high in the personality trait of dominance tended to have cats who were also quite dominant, as well as neurotic and extroverted. Owners who had more of an impulsive personality were more likely to have kitties who leaned toward impulsive behavior.

"Our results suggest that owner personality may have an inﬂuence on the type of cat a person is ﬁrst attracted to or the decision to maintain ownership of the cat," researchers wrote.

For example, since an impulsive cat tends to act more excitable and unpredictable than a stereotypical aloof kitty, this pet might be more attractive to a person who tends to be more impulsive than not.

However, researchers also point out that it's unclear what specific cues draw a potential owner to an individual cat. Additionally, since the humans were the only ones that could actually respond to this questionnaire (sorry, cats), it's worth noting that owners might view their cats a bit differently than the cats view themselves — due to their own human personality traits.

Overall, most cat owners were more satisfied with pets who scored high in agreeableness and low in neuroticism. But even if you have the most agreeable cat and you're a pretty agreeable person, you have to chuckle a bit about those distinctive cat quirks. After all, you probably don't feel compelled to knock something off the counter just because your cat does!

Next, see some of the most adorable two-faced cats that make us do a double-take in the video below: